Alert archive / Alabama / Flash Flood Warnings in 1998

Flash Flood Warning 50, NWS Birmingham, AL

July 9, 1998Jefferson County, Alabama

NWS Birmingham, AL issued this flash flood warning at Jul 9, 1998, 2:09 PM CDT for Jefferson County, Alabama. It was in force for 2 hr. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.

The area

The counties it named.

The facts

Issued
Jul 9, 1998, 2:09 PM CDT (19:09 UTC)
Expired
Jul 9, 1998, 4:10 PM CDT
In force
2 hr
Issued by
NWS Birmingham, AL
Area
Whole counties

County Jefferson County, AL

The nearest sounding before it

Birmingham, AL (KBMX), launched 12:00Z, 7.2 hours before the alert went out and 43 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.

Skew-T log-pSkew-T log-p diagram, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 1998-07-09Temperature and dew point through the depth of the atmosphere, with the mixed-layer parcel. CAPE 2394 joules per kilogram.LCLLFCEL10008507005003002001001 km2 km3 km6 km9 km12 km15 km-30°-20°-10°0°10°20°30°40°
Temperature in red, dew point in green, the mixed-layer parcel dashed.
HodographHodograph, Birmingham, AL at 12:00Z on 1998-07-09The wind through the lowest 10 kilometers. Zero to 1 km storm-relative helicity -17 square meters per square second.1939Sfc1 km3 km6 km9 kmRMLM
The wind turning with height, colored by layer: ground to 1 km, 1 to 3 km, 3 to 6 km, 6 to 10 km.
Mixed-layer CAPE
2394 J/kg
Mixed-layer CIN
-46 J/kg
Mixed-layer LCL
772 m above ground
0-6 km bulk shear
2 kt
0-1 km storm-relative helicity
-17 m²/s²
0-3 km storm-relative helicity
-7 m²/s²
Significant tornado parameter
0.0
Supercell composite
0.0

Open this sounding in Storm Lab

The text

As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.

000 
TTAA00 KBHM 091911
FFWBHM
ALC073-092110-

BULLETIN - EAS ACTIVATION REQUESTED
FLASH FLOOD WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
209 PM CDT THU JUL 9 1998

THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN BIRMINGHAM HAS ISSUED A

* FLASH FLOOD WARNING FOR...
  JEFFERSON COUNTY... IN CENTRAL ALABAMA

* UNTIL 410 PM CDT

* AT 205 PM CDT... NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE DOPPLER RADAR SHOWED
  THUNDERSTORMS WITH VERY HEAVY RAIN MOVING SOUTHEAST 20 MPH.

* HEAVY RAIN HAS FALLEN...AS MUCH AS 2 TO 3 INCHES...AND ADDITIONAL
RAIN WILL FALL ACROSS MUCH OF CENTRAL JEFFERSON COUNTY.

DON'T DRIVE INTO AREAS WHERE WATER COVERS THE ROAD!


AREA RESIDENTS SHOULD MONITOR FLOOD CONDITIONS... AND BE PREPARED
TO MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND... SHOULD FLOOD WATERS THREATEN. IF FLASH
FLOODING IS OBSERVED... ACT QUICKLY. MOVE TO HIGHER GROUND TO
ESCAPE FLOOD WATERS. DO NOT STAY IN AREAS SUBJECT TO FLOODING WHEN
WATER BEGINS RISING.

What forecasters said that day

The local office's own words before this flash flood warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.

In the hours before

Special weather statement, Jul 9, 9:30 AM CDT, 4 hours 39 minutes before
ALZ001>050-GAZ089-090-102-120-100225-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
FOR NORTH/CENTRAL AL AND WEST CENTRAL GA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
930 AM CDT THU JUL 9 1998

HOT AND HUMID WEATHER WILL CONTINUE OVER THE AREA AGAIN TODAY.  HEAT
INDICES ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM 105 TO 110 OVER MUCH OF CENTRAL AND
SOUTH ALABAMA...AND WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA.  AN EXCESSIVE HEAT ADVISORY
IN EFFECT TODAY ACROSS WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA THROUGH FRIDAY.

SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALSO EXPECTED TODAY...AND THIS
PRECIPITATION WILL BRING SOME RELIEF FROM THE HEAT.  A FEW
THUNDERSTORMS MAY PRODUCED SOME STRONG DOWNDRAFT WINDS THIS AFTERNOON
...BUT WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED...AND ACTIVATION OF
STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL SHOULD NOT BE
NECESSARY.

FOR THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...SEE PRODUCT
BHMSPSMOB.  FOR SOUTHEAST ALABAMA...LOOK AT MIASPSTLH.  FOR MORE
WEATHER INFORMATION VISIT OUR INTERNET SITE ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT
HTTP://WWW.ACESAG.AUBURN.EDU/DEPARTMENT/NWS/
Special weather statement, Jul 9, 9:30 AM CDT, 4 hours 39 minutes before
ALZ001>050-GAZ089-090-102-120-100225-

HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK
FOR NORTH/CENTRAL AL AND WEST CENTRAL GA
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE BIRMINGHAM AL
930 AM CDT THU JUL 9 1998

HOT AND HUMID WEATHER WILL CONTINUE OVER THE AREA AGAIN TODAY.  HEAT
INDICES ARE EXPECTED TO RANGE FROM 105 TO 110 OVER MUCH OF CENTRAL AND
SOUTH ALABAMA...AND WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA.  AN EXCESSIVE HEAT ADVISORY
IN EFFECT TODAY ACROSS WEST CENTRAL GEORGIA THROUGH FRIDAY.

SCATTERED SHOWERS AND THUNDERSTORMS ARE ALSO EXPECTED TODAY...AND THIS
PRECIPITATION WILL BRING SOME RELIEF FROM THE HEAT.  A FEW
THUNDERSTORMS MAY PRODUCED SOME STRONG DOWNDRAFT WINDS THIS AFTERNOON
...BUT WIDESPREAD SEVERE WEATHER IS NOT EXPECTED...AND ACTIVATION OF
STORM SPOTTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT PERSONNEL SHOULD NOT BE
NECESSARY.

FOR THE HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK FOR SOUTHWEST ALABAMA...SEE PRODUCT
BHMSPSMOB.  FOR SOUTHEAST ALABAMA...LOOK AT MIASPSTLH.  FOR MORE
WEATHER INFORMATION VISIT OUR INTERNET SITE ON THE WORLD WIDE WEB AT
HTTP://WWW.ACESAG.AUBURN.EDU/DEPARTMENT/NWS/

The office that day

Everything else NWS Birmingham, AL issued on the same UTC day.

IssuedProductOfficeCountiesLasted
Jul 9, 1:06 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXWalker64 min
Jul 9, 1:11 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXJefferson64 min
Jul 9, 1:27 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXShelby63 min
Jul 9, 1:55 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXCoosa50 min
Jul 9, 2:01 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXTallapoosa34 min
Jul 9, 2:12 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXTalladega33 min
Jul 9, 3:47 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXMontgomery63 min
Jul 9, 3:49 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXPerry51 min
Jul 9, 4:32 PM CDTSevere Thunderstorm WarningBMXBarbour48 min

Nearby

Flash Flood Warnings in Alabama, 1998Every flash flood warning in 1998

Sources

The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive.